Why I am Plant Based + You Should Consider It Too

So I am not here to tell you what to do or convince you to give a shit, but I have dedicated my energy and efforts to this point to live a life that challenges and questions the world around me and the way it operates. To show up for what I feel is right and needed…and this, my friends, is dire. I am going to share with you just a small portion of the information I have gathered that has encouraged me to truly become completely plant based. There is SO much more that I will eventually get into, but this information was the turning point for me.

On my birthday this year, October 8, the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) released their most recent report/warning on the global climate issue. Now, I do not care what your political standings are, but this is EVERYONE’S issue. We all share this world, require air to breath, food and water to nourish, and in turn, the Earth to make sure all of that happens. Basically, this report, issued by the world’s leading climate scientists, states that there are only a dozen years for global warming to be kept to a maximum of 1.5C. Beyond even half a degree of that will significantly worsen the risks of drought, floods, extreme heat and poverty for hundreds of millions of people. If that FACT is not enough, you can read more of the actual report here, or this article, or google IPCC 1.5 report and there is plenty of reading to be had. It is terrifying. But what is even more terrifying, is our complacency. We have trained ourselves to not feel, and if we do, we just like to think its someone else’s problem. BUT that someone else is US. WE are the only ones who can make lifestyle changes for the better.

I recently listened to a podcast where Joseph Poore from Oxford University was interviewed about his research on the environmental impacts of food production. You can read the full study here or listen to the podcast here (on 10/8/18). Poore states that “Specifically, plant-based diets reduce food’s emissions by up to 73% depending where you live. This reduction is not just in greenhouse gas emissions, but also acidifying and eutrophying emissions which degrade terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Freshwater withdrawals also fall by a quarter. Perhaps most staggeringly, we would require ~3.1 billion hectares (76%) less farmland. 'This would take pressure off the world’s tropical forests and release land back to nature.”

I’ve heard all the facts, watched the documentaries, seen the horrific footage, and STILL was only about 85% plant based. More out of convenience than anything else; the constant people pleaser in me. So I am definitely not a hypocrite here, I’ve been that person too. I am a deep animal lover, but how much could I say I love animals if I contribute to their pain and suffering DAILY?! I was not walking the talk. But I am over that ridiculous, ego driven mindset of needing to have whatever I want when I want it. Or thinking that my body NEEDS it. As humans, we have ingrained a sense of instant gratification into our lifestyles-I want a burger, I am going to get it, I want a mango out of season, I am going to get it. All the flavors, species, strands, we want it all all the time. We also justify the things we want as necessity. AND it is just not acceptable any longer. There are ways to do things that challenge the norm, that are somewhat uncomfortable to get started in, but it is ultimately not always about US. We talk all the time about future generations, we work hard and make money for the sake of our families, for their future, but to what end?! They won’t have a world to live in anyways, if we don’t start putting our efforts where they belong.

That is why I have decided to take a stand, to live by what I truly believe, for the sake of myself, the world around me, and our future generations. I have been moving towards zero waste for some time now, and am very conscious about where my money and energy goes, but it is time to set my standards higher. I will be sharing my journey here, full of recipes, ideas, and inspiration about plant powered living. It is MUCH easier than you would ever imagine and so empowering to know that not only what you are putting in your body is fueling YOU, but also this phenomenal Earth we inhabit, and the sweet animals we love so much.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this (political rants aside) and about how you have possibly been thinking the same thing (or not) or any recipes you have had that were inspiring to your journey!

Let’s remember, though, we are all on a different journey and though mine may look different than yours, we all deserve a happy, healthy world to live in.